• All IHC stains will include a positive control tissue

• SF-1 immunostain is useful for diagnosis of the family of pituitary adenomas that display development along the gonadotropin spectrum^1,2
• It is more sensitive than antibodies to LH and FSH
• It is also present within normal anterior pituitary gland, so the presence of pituitary adenoma must be confirmed on H&E stains (occasionally with the support of ancillary stains such as reticulin stains for normal adenohypophyseal architecture)
• It is also a sensitive marker of sex cord stromal tumors of the ovary^3-5, and can be used to distinguish these tumors from other types of ovarian tumor

Submit a formalin-fixed, paraffin embedded tissue block

Formalin-fixed, paraffin embedded (FFPE) tissue block

FFPE tissue section mounted on a charged, unstained slide

Ambient (preferred)

• Unlabeled/mislabeled block
• Insufficient tissue
• Slides broken beyond repair

Immunohistochemical staining and microscopic examination

If requested, an interpretive report will be provided

Specifications

• Steroidogenic Factor-1 (SF-1) is a member of the steroid receptor superfamily of genes and encodes a transcription factor that regulates certain cytochrome P450 genes (CYP11A and CYP11B)
• It is found in anterior pituitary cells containing gonadotropins luteinizing hormone (LH) or follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH), but not in other adenohypophyseal cell types

Staining pattern

• Strong nuclear staining is observed within gonadotrophs, pituitary adenomas that develop along this line of differentiation and in other (non-pituitary) tumors that express SF-1

References

1. Asa SL, Bamberger AM, Cao B, Wong M, Parker KL, Ezzat S. The transcription activator steroidogenic factor-1 is preferentially expressed in the human pituitary gonadotroph. J Clin Endocrinol Metab. 1996;81(6):2165-70.
2. Luo X, Ikeda Y, Parker KL. A cell-specific nuclear receptor is essential for adrenal and gonadal development and sexual differentiation. Cell. 1994;77(4):481-90.
3. Rabban JT, Zaloudek CJ. A practical approach to immunohistochemical diagnosis of ovarian germ cell tumours and sex cord-stromal tumours. Histopathology. 2013;62(1):71-88. doi: 10.1111/his.12052.
4. Zhao C, Barner R, Vinh TN, McManus K, Dabbs D, Vang R. SF-1 is a diagnostically useful immunohistochemical marker and comparable to other sex cord-stromal tumor markers for the differential diagnosis of ovarian sertoli cell tumor. Int J Gynecol Pathol. 2008;27(4):507-14. doi: 10.1097/PGP.0b013e31817c1b0a.
5. Zhao C, Vinh TN, McManus K, Dabbs D, Barner R, Vang R. Identification of the most sensitive and robust immunohistochemical markers in different categories of ovarian sex cord-stromal tumors. Am J Surg Pathol. 2009;33(3):354-66. doi: 10.1097/PAS.0b013e318188373d.